“This tale of loss, punishment, and the struggle for forgiveness grabs the reader by the throat and never lets go.” — Publishers Weekly
A suspenseful literary debut for fans of Dennis Lehane and Tom Franklin examining the aftershocks of survival—and the price of salvation.
In the blue-collar town of Chittenango, New York, birthplace of L. Frank Baum, two young boys are abducted from the annual Oz Fest and taken to a cabin in the woods. When they are next seen, ten-year-old Dean has escaped by swimming across Oneida Lake holding his brother’s dead body. But when he returns, he and the world he knew have both changed irrevocably. In the years that follow, Dean, his family, and the town struggle to cope with the collateral damage of this unspeakable act of violence. From drug addiction to abandonment, it becomes clear that the reverberations of trauma are far-reaching—and the path to redemption is pockmarked, twisted, and often hidden from view.
In a sweeping narrative spanning decades and told from alternating points of view, Where the Sun Shines Out unites its characters around the themes of families, trauma, and the terrible things people do to each other when they’re doing their best.
Skyhorse Publishing October 2017
|
"Where the Sun Shines out is an arresting debut―it's smart, horrifying, yet brimming with heart. You will not be able to put it down." ― Tayari Jones, author of An American Marriage
"Be warned, this is dark territory to trespass through and by the last page your brain will be rattled by the tense prose and bad ass storytelling." -- Frank Bill, author of The Savage
"I fucking loved this book.... Natural, conversational prose and characters that very well might live across the street from all of us populate this story of how a simple decision can define all the lives around us.... I'll dare to bet this novel will be talked about for many, many years to come." ― Brian Panowich, award-winning author of Bull Mountain
"Where the Sun Shines Out examines not only how an act of violence can tear apart the heart of a town and a family, but how that heart can be repaired, stitch by stitch." ― Lou Berney, Edgar Award-winning of The Long and Faraway Gone
“Where the Sun Shines Out is a beautifully written psychological thriller that explores with depth and compassion the psychological price of survival. Kevin Catalano has written a compelling novel full of memorable characters whose many perspectives demonstrate the far reaches of a single criminal act.”
―Lee Zacharias, author of The Only Sounds We Make
“Unsettling and deeply felt, a book that reminds us fate won’t be outrun.”—Erin McKnight, founding editor and publisher of Queen’s Ferry Press
“I read this novel in one sitting. How does a person redeem a real life nightmare? Kevin Catalano portrays the full ramifications with an astute eye and great wisdom. He can't write his next book fast enough for me.”
―Alice Elliott Dark, author of In the Gloaming and Think of England
"Be warned, this is dark territory to trespass through and by the last page your brain will be rattled by the tense prose and bad ass storytelling." -- Frank Bill, author of The Savage
"I fucking loved this book.... Natural, conversational prose and characters that very well might live across the street from all of us populate this story of how a simple decision can define all the lives around us.... I'll dare to bet this novel will be talked about for many, many years to come." ― Brian Panowich, award-winning author of Bull Mountain
"Where the Sun Shines Out examines not only how an act of violence can tear apart the heart of a town and a family, but how that heart can be repaired, stitch by stitch." ― Lou Berney, Edgar Award-winning of The Long and Faraway Gone
“Where the Sun Shines Out is a beautifully written psychological thriller that explores with depth and compassion the psychological price of survival. Kevin Catalano has written a compelling novel full of memorable characters whose many perspectives demonstrate the far reaches of a single criminal act.”
―Lee Zacharias, author of The Only Sounds We Make
“Unsettling and deeply felt, a book that reminds us fate won’t be outrun.”—Erin McKnight, founding editor and publisher of Queen’s Ferry Press
“I read this novel in one sitting. How does a person redeem a real life nightmare? Kevin Catalano portrays the full ramifications with an astute eye and great wisdom. He can't write his next book fast enough for me.”
―Alice Elliott Dark, author of In the Gloaming and Think of England
The secret is in the bone. Yet Kevin Catalano’s debut collection, The Word Made Flesh, palpates a primal recognition that the revelation is also in its sinews: the short short stories that possess a universe of knowing, yet also exquisite frailty, working in rhythmic concert to elevate the flawed human form. A system of symbolism, a machine of metaphor, The Word Made Flesh is the bodily incarnation of transformative language. -- Erin McKnight, editor of Queens Ferry Press and firthFORTH Books
Queens Ferry Press, 2012
REVIEWS
Thomas Michael Duncan at PANK
Ben Spivey at The Small Press Book Review
Goodreads